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Today, Monday 5 February, human rights activists in Nepal are holding
a press conference calling on the Nepal Government to distribute
land to displaced former bonded labourers. Thousands of former bonded
labourers have been left without any system of support since the
Nepal Government's July declaration that bonded labour is illegal.
Anti-Slavery International, ActionAid Nepal, and more than ten
other prominent international non-governmental organisations are
submitting a petition in Kathmandu today calling on the Government
to implement rehabilitation measures, including distributing enough
land for a family to feed itself throughout the year --10 katha
(one katha = 17 X 20 metres).
Even though the Government on 6 December 2000 promised between
one katha and five katha of land for each displaced
family, none has yet received any. Apart from this amount being
insufficient to support a family, no system is in place to facilitate
redistribution.
At the end of December 2000, about 400 former bonded labourers
in far western Kailali and Kanchanpur Districts seized land after
the Government failed to provide crucial relief. The former bonded
labourers, frustrated by the authorities' inaction on land reform
said, 'it is better to die from a bullet than from hunger,' according
to a report by Bharat M Devkota, Save the Children (US).
The bonded labourers began their demonstrations in May 2000, and
in July moved their protest to the capital, Kathmandu. On 17 July
the Government declared bonded labour illegal.
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